Meal Deals, and meal deals

[disco2000]

And keep in mind that KI staff are members of this board and in the past at least one member had their season pass voided when posting about a "glitch" allowing them more drinks (but re-instituted after having a talk to by the park).  Such plan now no longer exists.  Variety of reasons why, but people posting work-arounds certainly had something to do it with its demise.

This is a smaller social media site so the issue/concern isn't as widespread as on Facebook, but you can be sure one of the reasons the meal plan went from 2-hour intervals to 4-hour intervals were all the people commenting on Facebook how they shared the meal plan.  And it will be the comments on Facebook that probably continue to be a more driving force in changing policies, especially if the posts are costing the park money.

But yes, the park is trying to get better control on food costs.  A big portion was wasted food at the end of the night - tossed out food was unbelievably high.  Partly why you see food closing earlier and being limited on what is available right before close - to minimize food waste.  Hopefully the quality and quantity of food doesn't continue to suffer as people have experienced between last year and this year.

[harveyhaddixfan]

My sharing plan this year is different. A friend has a pass and the meal plan. That way when we go together we can share a meal, eat smaller portions and eat more often. Example: tenders at Chicken Shack. I eat one, she eats one, we each eat some fries and throw away 1 tender and a lot of fries.

I would be perfectly fine with even smaller meals for the meal plan if they were more frequent. Skyline: 1 coney and like 1/3 of the fries I got Saturday. CS: 1-2 tenders and small order of fries. Panda: 1 entree & small side. All of this provided I could eat 3 times, 2 hours apart.

To clarify, 2 people, 2 meal plans. Not exactly "sharing" like some. It's just most meals are way too much for me (weight loss surgery 3 years ago). I gave a guy half my Tom+Chee sandwich instead of throwing it away. This is why I favor smaller meals closer together.

[alsoran]

Sharing should not be the problem with a meal plan.  How is that any different than if you didn't have a meal plan and only bought one meal and shared.  I don't see that being a problem.  However, KI has other issues with the meal plan.  All the complaints from the beginning of them seems as if KI doesn't care about them, or their food service.  I have a meal plan on both passes we have.  However, it is probably more practical to go outside the park to eat.  Better food at a quicker pace.  I haven't seen any complaints about this at any other park.  Maybe I am not looking, but of my many trips to CP, there has not been any problems with getting food.  No hour or longer waits for food lines.  Even a trip to KD last year and did not see extreme lines, even at peak times.  

 

KI is probably my favorite park, CP is ok, just to much down time on coasters there.  Maybe I am wrong, but it seems like CP has a tendency to not open some coasters to keep lines for others longer.  This is just a vent, and my opinion, that is all.  I am getting older and actually enjoy just waking through the parks as much as I do riding rides.  As a passholder with a meal plan, I may start spending more time at CP.  More choices, and shorter food lines.  It is only about a half hour longer drive.  Ok, vent over, continue on.

[King Ding Dong]

4 hours ago, alsoran said:

 I haven't seen any complaints about this at any other park.  

Well now you have.   SFSTL is just as bad if not worse in service.   The difference being at KI service seems to get better as the season progresses for the most part.   At SFSTL it just stays bad.  

[Creed Bratton]

5 hours ago, alsoran said:

Sharing should not be the problem with a meal plan.  How is that any different than if you didn't have a meal plan and only bought one meal and shared.  I don't see that being a problem.

The difference is that with the meal plan, it can be "paid off" after so many uses, where the folks (including myself) get meals "for free" (the amount of times I've used it has reached and exceeded the cost I put into it). So if these folks that are sharing are at that point, it's 2 people getting food for "free" when it should only be one person. 

It's also about integrity. 

[YOULLBEBACK]

When buying an all day meal plan, IMO, the customer should assume a realistic expectation on wait time for receiving food.  When that assumed expectation is not met habitually, I, respectfully, have little sympathy for sharing being a "problem" for the park.   

[Creed Bratton]

The problem with that is, "assumed." 

This whole wait time stuff, I don't see it. I've been to the park enough last year and even opening weekend this year where I waited maybe 15 minutes at most (and that was because I got in line at a prime lunch time). 

[harveyhaddixfan]

The difference is that with the meal plan, it can be "paid off" after so many uses, where the folks (including myself) get meals "for free" (the amount of times I've used it has reached and exceeded the cost I put into it). So if these folks that are sharing are at that point, it's 2 people getting food for "free" when it should only be one person. 

It's also about integrity. 

I guess there's 2 ways to look at it.

1: there are 2 (or more) people sharing the food given to them in the meal.

2: one person eats all of the same food given to the people in example 1 or they eat some of it and throw the rest away.

Either way, it shouldn't matter. Two meals a day is two meals a day. Doesn't matter if 1 person eats all the food or if 5 people share 2 meals. Integrity has nothing to do with this.

Now the drink plan on the other hand.......

[Creed Bratton]

How is it any different than the drink plan? It's still being misused.

Integrity does have to do with it.....the season dining plan is purchased on a specific season pass it's for that season pass holder, it's not for the season pass holder's wife, husband, daughter, son, cousin, etc. it's for that person. That would fall under misuse which is against the terms and conditions on the season passes. 

It's one thing for someone to use their season pass how they see fit, but to publicly post on here that they're misusing the season pass is not okay, especially since folks from the park read these threads. 

 

[disco2000]

11 hours ago, chugh43 said:

.....
It's one thing for someone to use their season pass how they see fit, but to publicly post on here that they're misusing the season pass is not okay, especially since folks from the park read these threads. 

 

We have tried to warn - they may find out soon enough when their pass shows up void when they try to enter lol!

I am not saying that is the case here, but in the past that has happened when people have posted a "misuse".  And that goes to Facebook posts too.

Now if they would only do that to those that post illegal ride photos and videos, but that is another topic altogether lol.

[IndyGuy4KI]

Please talk with guest relations if you are uncertain of park policies of your meal and drink plans. 

Let's get back on subject which is meal deals and your thoughts about them. 

I have yet to eat in RHOFG this season. Has anyone else eaten there, and what are your thoughts on the changes?

[Magenta Lizard]

I got the grilled chicken sandwich at RHoFG last visit. Being alone, I liked being able to just put in my order and grab a drink to sip while I waited for my food. The system with the paging disks wasn't working, so someone came from the kitchen and asked what my order was, then went back in to get it. The sandwich was pretty good, and the whole thing didn't take too long (I was there not long after they opened for the day).

I think once they get the system working properly, it is going to be a great improvement. I already didn't go through the typical rigamarole of arriving around the time they supposedly would open only to be turned away indefinitely because their servers were late/hadn't showed. 

[BeeastFarmer]

Financially, the All Season Dining is a great deal.  As is the drink plan.  I think, from reading the posts here and from my one visit this year, the park is trying to improve and has listened to guests.  Having been to a few other parks now, I can say that KI has some goals to reach to improve the speed of service, and I am glad to see/hear they are doing that.  Also, I am glad to hear that they are decreasing serving portion sizes.  I am a big guy, but I couldn't eat what was presented to me most of the time and felt bad throwing it away.  Almost like the scene from one of The Hunger Games movie.

[malem]

The pager system at RHOFG was working on my last visit to the park (on April 30). We ordered & picked a table, then a server brought our food over within 5 minutes. If the RFID reader under the table doesn't pick up the pager, they should be able to make it light up.

It is a brand new system, so technical issues might not be fully resolved yet.

[Stoan]

22 hours ago, Magenta Lizard said:

I got the grilled chicken sandwich at RHoFG last visit. Being alone, I liked being able to just put in my order and grab a drink to sip while I waited for my food. The system with the paging disks wasn't working, so someone came from the kitchen and asked what my order was, then went back in to get it. The sandwich was pretty good, and the whole thing didn't take too long (I was there not long after they opened for the day).

I think once they get the system working properly, it is going to be a great improvement. I already didn't go through the typical rigamarole of arriving around the time they supposedly would open only to be turned away indefinitely because their servers were late/hadn't showed. 

Last time I had a grilled chicken sammich it almost appeared microwaved, no grill lines, no carmelization on the exterior, just uniformly hot. It was kind of an odd sensation, just a magically heated chicken breast patty with no indication of how it was cooked. At least it tasted like chicken, so I can't complain there.

[billgonemad]

I had the buffalo chicken salad from hall of fame grill for dinner. Best salad I've ever had at the park. Service was quick and easy today. Wife had the chicken sandwich and fries. Fries look and taste and awful like what they had at festhaus in the past (miss them!) Overall good experience there.

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[chad_1138]

Really disappointed in the lack of drink refill stations today.  As of 1, the ONLY one that was open was the one next to Diamondback.

[King Ding Dong]

If I understand statements made in this thread correctly it appears some feel that sharing a meal one obtains through the meal plan is against park and pass rules.   I found this position rather surprising but took Indyguy's advise and contacted Guest Services and this was the response:

"Hello and thank you for contacting Kings Island! As long as the person who picks up meal is the one the dining plan is registered to, they can share that meal with others. However, that person can still only get two meals a day with a four hour interval in between.

If you have any further questions, please let me know. Have the best day!"

For those that choose to split that chicken salad with their wife or the Dad that chooses to share chicken strips and some fries with his child, carry on and share with integrity.  
 

[KIDB]

If I understand statements made in this thread correctly it appears some feel that sharing a meal one obtains through the meal plan is against park and pass rules.   I found this position rather surprising but took Indyguy's advise and contacted Guest Services and this was the response:

"Hello and thank you for contacting Kings Island! As long as the person who picks up meal is the one the dining plan is registered to, they can share that meal with others. However, that person can still only get two meals a day with a four hour interval in between.

If you have any further questions, please let me know. Have the best day!"

For those that choose to split that chicken salad with their wife or the Dad that chooses to share chicken strips and some fries with his child, carry on and share with integrity.  
 

I've never thought twice about sharing our meal. I found their response of importance to me because the meal plan is on my pass but 9/10x my husband gets it. Sometimes I am standing nearby, sometimes at a bench, rarely physically with him. In two years, we've never had an issue and I'm surprised by that. As in reading from the last page back, I see integrity issues were brought up. I don't really think it's an integrity issues unless someone sent their dining plan pass with someone and they weren't even at the park to consume the food. That's beyond normal use/sharing and a clear mis-use.

 

 

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[King Ding Dong]

^ I don't know what if any changes CF has made to their IT systems recently but at SF since at least 2013 you cannot get a meal from the meal plan unless you have scanned into the park.  I assume it has worked the same way at CF, the wording on the website that discusses the plan certainly has indicated that in the past.   Maybe my mind is not devious enough but there is not really any way I can think of to abuse or misuse the system.   It is rather simple, you are at the park, paid for your plan, pickup your food. 

Who cares what you choose to do with it after that?  I suppose you could set up a lemonade stand and try and sell it to passerbys and that would be over the top, but short of that, I think CF has bigger things to worry about than being Food Cops.  

 

[KIDB]

^ I don't know what if any changes CF has made to their IT systems recently but at SF since at least 2013 you cannot get a meal from the meal plan unless you have scanned into the park.  I assume it has worked the same way at CF, the wording on the website that discusses the plan certainly has indicated that in the past.   Maybe my mind is not devious enough but there is not really any way I can think of to abuse or misuse the system.   It is rather simple, you are at the park, paid for your plan, pickup your food. 
Who cares what you choose to do with it after that?  I suppose you could set up a lemonade stand and try and sell it to passerbys and that would be over the top, but short of that, I think CF has bigger things to worry about than being Food Cops.  
 

I wondered if that was the case. Makes sense as that would definitely prevent any abuse.
And I agree, I'm not throwing any excess food away from the plan that I purchased. IMO, it's mine to do as I please as long as I'm in the park.


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[DMann1979]

I am a fan of the Saratoga Chips at the RHOFG. I like those thick cut chips in general. The chicken tenders dinner with them was pretty good all in all.

[Stoan]

Oh yeah, the chips are worlds better than the fry upgrade. You get more, they are unique to the place and they go really well with the hot wing sauce for dipping. Don't upgrade.

[Gannersdaddy]

Just ate there for the first time. The tenders were good.  The chips were ok. I think a thicker cut would have been better though.

Service was quick (10 min). Guy dropped a food tray at the end of the table. Je was apologizing all over. No big deal. These things happen and no one was splattered. However, after sweeping up  (basically painting the floor), no one came back to mop it up for 20 minutes. 

Maybe it's me, but the floor in there is pretty slick. The mop job did not aid this much. Something I will watch in the future. 

Overall, I would go again

[awoody]

Just ate at Hank's Mexican Grill. Outstanding across the board. Huge portions. Through the line in 10 minutes. Great service from the staff.

My family used our All-Season Dining Passes. Exceptional value as not one of us  were able to finish our meals.

[IndyGuy4KI]

I had Panda Express for lunch and Chicken Shack for dinner today. Improved service from my last visits. One guy in Chicken Shack was really working hard to get people through. 

Beastie1980 had good service as well. She was at Panda while I was at Chicken Shack.

[Stoan]

Got the Gluten Free Pizza at Festhaus today, pleasantly surprised!

 

I mean the crust is horrible, unless you really like crumbly bread. But the fact it is cooked fresh helps a lot. Good cheese, only a few pepperonis, and is actually a little less sweet than LaRosa's. I might get it again, once I decide I hate good crust again.

 

Tried out Red's Hall of Fame too. I like the new system, the wing sauces are still pretty dang good, and the chips are still satisfying. The Chicken however was the driest I have had outside the desert. Forgot the breading in RHOF for the tenders was a bit different too.

[Italian Job 2005]

I ate at Hank's today as well. I was originally worried when I walked in (around 2:40pm) because only one side was open with only one register open. But the register associate as well as the food assembly associates were extremely fast. Got through a line of ~ 10 people in 15 minutes. The associate at the register was very very quick and knowledgeable, as he was able to sell me the season pass drink plan on the spot.


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[FoF96"]

Speaking of food, when did Jukebox Diner change their burger recipe?  When I went two years ago I really enjoyed the burger.  On my last visit it was truly terrible with an almost unnatural texture and bad flavoring that I absolutely hated.  It upset me because that used to be a must eat but now I may have to find somewhere else for lunch.

[Magenta Lizard]

^"unnatural texture" makes me think they've probably gone to the same food-service burgers they serve over in Picnic Grove and had at Planet Snoopy Grill last year. I hadn't tried Jukebox's burger previously, but the texture of the others I've had at the park are certainly unique.